Roeder set to return in weeks

The West Ham United manager Glenn Roeder could be back behind his desk at Upton Park in a matter of weeks after a dramatic improvement in his condition.

Roeder, 47, who collapsed after West Ham's 1-0 Premiership win over Middlesbrough nine days ago, has been in intensive care at the Royal London Hospital after being diagnosed with a blocked blood vessel in his brain.

But he was moved to a private ward yesterday and, although he will undergo surgery in the next few weeks to remove a small lesion from his brain, he is expected to make a full recovery.

A club statement read: "West Ham United are delighted to report that Glenn Roeder has made very good progress over the past few days and is now out of intensive care. He will require neurosurgery in the near future but a full recovery and a return to work is expected within the next six to eight weeks."

The club's assistant manager Paul Goddard said: "It has been an incredibly difficult time for everyone and for me personally, as a good friend of Glenn's as well as a colleague."

Goddard said that he and the players were deeply moved when Roeder's wife Faith and daughter Holly visited the club's Chadwell Heath training ground before Sunday's match at Manchester City to talk to the club captain Steve Lomas and the team captain Joe Cole.

He said: "That took remarkable courage in the circumstances and I think it had a wonderful affect on team morale."

The players proved it in a thrilling 1-0 victory under the caretaker manager and club director Trevor Brooking, who will remain in charge, along with Goddard and Roger Cross, until the end of the season. The result gave the Hammers an outside chance of beating the drop, although they will probably need to win their final two games, against Chelsea at Upton Park on Saturday and at Birmingham on Sunday week.

Brooking said before the Manchester City game that whatever happened to the team, the priority was for Roeder to recover and that he took the job in what he described as an unprecedented situation purely in the interests of continuity.

With Roeder possibly fit to return in mid-June, that continuity should not be interrupted, though if West Ham are relegated Brooking, in his role as a director, may need to confer with his board over the possible sale of first-team players. None, however, would be sold before consultation with Roeder.

The club statement added: "Faith Roeder would like to thank all those who have sent messages of best wishes and support, especially those from many hundreds of Hammers fans. Faith has also requested that the family's privacy continues to be respected at this time."